Indigenous Peoples’ Day Remembrance and Celebration
“We are on Indigenous Land”
Monday, October 10, 2022, Fuller Middle School Front Lawn Amphitheatre
You are invited to the second annual Framingham Indigenous Peoples’ Day gathering, sponsored by Jewish Family Service, Framingham Public Schools, Framingham Vibes, Open Spirit and Edwards Church, and Greater Framingham Community Church. This year’s event is student-led and centered on acknowledging Nipmuc Nation land. Community leaders and cultural stewards of the Nipmuc Nation will provide leadership.
Special Lunch Bunch Italian Take-Out Meal
Wednesday, October 19 at noon
Lunch Bunch will gather for a special Italian take-out meal on Wednesday, October 19. We will get a variety of food to share from a local restaurant. Sign up by emailing Debbie or at church. We will also meet for a regular, bring-your-own lunch on Wednesday, October 5 at noon. Weather-permitting, we will be outdoors. If it’s too chilly, we’ll move into Sue Dickerman Hall.
Heartbeat of Community: Celebrating Ten Years of Connection
Day of Spirit and Tenth Anniversary Celebration
Saturday, October 22, 10:00am-3:30pm
Register here: https://tinyurl.com/DayOfSpir
Read full workshop descriptions here: openspiritcenter.org/day-of-s
Donation of $30, or pay what you can (cost should not be a barrier to participation)
Open Spirit is ten years old! Mark your calendar for a joyous day of conversation, reflection, workshops, and exploration of our theme, the Heartbeat of Community. Debbie Clark and Danielle Rousseau will offer an opening talk, reflecting on our Resilience in Community interviews and research. Morning workshops include a one-mile guided walk, community art project, heart chakra meditation, and journaling. In the afternoon you can choose between drumming, meditation, or yoga. Our offerings include in-person (outdoors if possible), Zoom only, and hybrid options, so you don’t have to be physically present to participate. The day will end with a celebration of our anniversary. Come for the whole day or come at 2:30 for the celebration!
Gather Free Herbs on Our Campus
Please feel free to help yourself to fresh herbs in the Christian Explorers and Open Spirit herb boxes in front of Jonathan House before we harvest and winterize the boxes!!!.
TRUNK OR TREAT
Sunday, October 30 from 1:00-3:00pm
In the Edwards Hall parking lot
Sign up: https://tinyurl.com/EdwardsTr
It’s time to get dust off our costumes and decorations for the third annual Trunk-or-Treat at Edwards! Come spread some joy, show off your spooky fashions, and watch the tiny goulies, ghosties, fairies, and dinosaurs as they parade around seeking sweets and surprises! This is a fun-filled, fright-free event—certified non-haunted—with fellowship and crafts for the kids, and unlimited smiles for the adults.
Everyone handing out treats should be parked by 12:45, before the little monsters begin to arrive. You should plan for about 30 kids. Participants will receive an email with safety instructions as we receive registrations. You don’t need a trunk to hand out treats; everyone is welcome!
Songs at the Heart of our Times
Bringing Hope and Uplifting Community Through Music
Sunday, October 30 at 5:00pm in the Edwards Church Sanctuary
Reserve your free ticket here
Recognizing that there is so much in our world today that weighs heavy on our hearts, a group of musicians are collaborating on a special show to offer hope, uplift and provide a renewed sense of community through music. Musicians include Kemp Harris, Linda Marks, Willie Sordillo, Doug Rich, Zoë Krohne and Mark Shilansky.
The concert is a fundraiser for two organizations that fight food insecurity—one local, one global. Our local partner is A Place to Turn, a choice food pantry in Natick that takes pride in offering its Metrowest clients a friendly and dignified experience. They offer emergency food, diapers and personal care products.
We are also supporting the Community Building for Food Sovereignty Project of the Organization of African Instituted Churches. This project works with small rural churches and farmers’ groups in East Africa to train Farmer Resource People who work with local farmers to develop sustainable farming practices with drought-resistant crops.
There is no charge to attend the concert; we hope participants will donate generously to support these two organizations. Space is limited, pleasereserve your free ticket here.
Sponsors include: Edwards Church, UCC; Open Spirit; A Place to Turn; St. Andrew Episcopal Church; Just Peace Players; Faith Community Church; Community of St. Luke; Greater Framingham Community Church; The Plymouth Church; Presbyterian Church in Sudbury; Temple Beth Am; Jewish Family Services; Community Chaplaincy Council; Temple Beth Sholom; First Parish UUA, Framingham; Framingham Friends Meeting.
GRATITUDE FOR YOUR GENEROSITY
Thank you to all those who have contributed to Edwards Church 195th birthday present! As of the end of September, we have raised over $30,000 towards our goal of $35,000! We couldn’t have accomplished this without your help and we are so grateful.
Through the month of October we will continue add to our “thermometer” and offer the Edwards Vintage and Other Treasures Sale on Sunday mornings at worship. Watch for updates on our fundraising progress. Should we go over our goal, we will add to the media tech fund to support our use of this important new technology in coming years.
We are so blessed to be part of such a faithful and generous community. When we work together, with the Holy Spirit in our midst, there’s no limit to what we can accomplish. Thank you for your faithful commitment to Edwards Church—195-years and still making a difference in Christ’s name in the community of Framingham and beyond!
Gratefully,
The 195th Birthday Dream Team
Clair Ball, Laura Beck, Lee Ann Friedman, Janet Sanders, Nicola Seaholm, Karen Nell Smith and Joanie White
NOVEMBER STEEPLE 
Call for Articles and Photographs!
Articles for the next issue of the Steeple are due on Wednesday, October 19. Submissions should be a maximum of about 350 words (speak to Nicola if you need more space; rules are made to be broken). We welcome you or your committee/team to send more than one article. We would love to include more images when possible, so if you tend to whip out your camera at church events (such as Trunk-or-Treat, Italian Lunch Bunch, or the October 30 benefit concert), please send your snaps to Nicola!
OCTOBER SPECIAL OFFERING
Our special offering for the month of October is for Neighbors in Need, which supports the UCC’s ministries of justice and compassion throughout the United States. Two-thirds of the offering is used by the UCC’s Justice and Witness Ministries to fund a wide array of local and national justice initiatives, advocacy efforts, and direct service projects. Neighbors in Need also supports the UCC’s Council for American Indian Ministries (CAIM). Historically, forebears of the UCC established churches and worked with Lakota, Dakota, Nakota, Mandan, Hidatsa, Arickara, and Hocak in North and South Dakota, Wisconsin, and northern Nebraska. Today there are twenty UCC congregations on reservations and one urban, multi-tribal UCC congregation in Minneapolis, Minnesota that are supported by CAIM.
SAVE THE DATE: Veterans Appreciation Dinner
Sunday, November 13 at 5:00pm in the Plymouth Church Hall
The Veterans Appreciation Dinner is back! With gratitude to MutualOne Bank for a grant, to Plymouth Church for offering their hall, and to Bella Costa for working with us to provide dinner, a team from Open Spirit has begun planning.
Our Open Spirit intern, Deanne Joy, along with her daughter Elise, has created a series of six quilts. Each quilt honors the experience of veterans of one of the wars in which they have fought. The quilts will be on display, and Deanne will be our keynote speaker, focusing on the quilts.
We will have a delicious meal from Bella Costa, and we are working on ideas for music. As in previous years, we are looking for folks who will bake cookies, bars or brownies (finger-food desserts), and folks who will help with welcoming, serving and cleaning up.